The present disclosure relates to the field of communication over a wireless network of an aircraft. In particular, the disclosure herein relates to a method and a system for automatically and securely connecting a mobile device to a wireless network of an aircraft.
Mobile electronic devices are increasingly being used in aircraft. As an example, the paper-based manuals and navigation maps that the pilot brings with him into the cockpit are currently replaced by an electronic flight bag (EFB) in the form of a tablet or portable computer that is much less heavy and more effective for the management of the flight than the paper documents. Furthermore, a maintenance operative may also need to connect a portable computer to the network of the aircraft to know the alerts or anomalies detected in the aircraft.
Thus, it is practical to use a wireless network of Wi-Fi type to allow an EFB, a tablet or a portable computer to be connected to the network of the aircraft. For example, it is advantageous for the maintenance operative to be connected to the network of the aircraft while moving about in or around the aircraft to perform maintenance operations.
Connecting to a wireless network usually requires authentication parameters (for example passwords, keys or certificates). The management of these parameters for an entire fleet of aircraft and of mobile devices is very complex, costly and involves a very heavy workload. In effect, it is not simple to manage the configuration of the various networks of the aircraft as well as the creation and the deployment of the authentication parameters on a multitude of mobile devices intended to be connected to the various wireless networks. Furthermore, it is necessary to manage the synchronization of the configuration of the mobile devices with respect to that of the networks of the various airplanes of the airline.
Furthermore, it is essential to provide a rapid organizational reaction to any security threat regarding the networks of the aircraft. In effect, in the case where a hacker accesses a password or a certificate by stealing, for example, an EFB, it is important to be highly reactive to reupdate the configuration of all the wireless networks of the aircraft concerned as well as all the EFBs that connect to the networks. Obviously, it is essential to be already aware that the EFB has been stolen or compromised.
Regarding the user, it is important to correctly verify that he or she is connected to the correct wireless network, for example that of the cockpit of the airplane, and not to that of the cabin or to the wireless network of a neighboring airplane or even to that of the airport. For this, the user may be required to know which is the correct wireless network and to manually select it, which for him or her represents an additional task.
More particularly, two eventualities may arise. According to a first case, the wireless network is already configured but the user is still connected to another network and, according to a second case, the wireless network is not at all configured. In the first case, the Wi-Fi parameters must be consulted to find the correct network in order to connect thereto. In the second case, it is in addition necessary to configure it by re-entering the parameters by hand, bearing in mind that the manual input of a long passphrase (i.e. a password having a large number of characters) can be very tedious.
An object of the present disclosure is consequently to propose a connection method and system that remedy the abovementioned drawbacks, in particular by automating the management of the connection parameters while increasing the security of the connection between a mobile device and a wireless network of an aircraft.